Cattle Health

Herd health and individual cattle health is important when raising cattle, because a producer needs to know what to do and how to treat a bovine that is sick or injured. There are many diseases and health concerns in the field of raising cattle, and they can be asked and answered here. Be sure to always consult your local licensed large animal veterinarian with concerns about your animals. Your vet is your best source of information.

If the cow isn't standing up then it's not healthy and you should be observing it's legs (feeling for injury or, looking for sores.) Cows will lay down off and on (as I'm sure you know) but to lay down all the time is injurious to the cow. I did research on this and even I was surprised at how lab…

Anything.
There are lots of things that can make cattle sick. Infection, bacteria, viruses, parasites, hardware, poisonous plants, antiquality factors such as bloat, nitrate toxicity and grass tetany, bad feed, or some genetic mutation that showed up later in life.

It depends on whether that cow is her mother or whether this heifer is a milk-thief. Mastitis can occur when the udder is subject to such injury as excessive bumping when the cow is running, when it's stepped on, or even by bacteria simply entering the teat canal into the udder. But if this cow hasn…

To some degree the answer depends upon the age of the calf and the severity of the diarrhea. In a neonatal calf with severe diarrhea, treatment needs to start immediately to prevent death within 48 hours; in a heavy calf with mild diarrhea, you can wait to see if intervention is needed.Overall, diar…

Violet Red Bile Agar and MPN are the tests that are used to confirm
coliform in cow milk. The plate count method takes 24 hours to
perform and can use 1.0 ml of 1:10 dilution and has a very high
sensitivity.

Mastitis in cows is inflammation of the udder. Infection is caused by many types of bacteria: Streptococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp., Klebsiella spp., etc. Mastitis develops when a quarter is contaminated from the outside environment, where pathogens enter the teat canal. Mastitis may be also cause…

Because it will spread rapidly among animals causing suffering!It does spread rapidly and cause varying levels of suffering depending on the age and species of the animal effected. However my Farm Welfare lecture told my class last year that having FMD in a population of livestock makes the animals …

There really isn't a treatment for Blackleg, since it is a highly fatal disease, except for giving the calf massive doses of penicillin or tetracyclines when the disease is in the early stages. This will sometimes help, though most cases the calf perishes anyway, and those calves that do get blackl…

No. The only way you can "cure" a calf, if the disease is caught in the early stages (which is quite rare) is to inject massive doses of penicillin and tetracyclines into the calf. Other than that the best "cure" is prevention, by vaccinating your herd for blackleg before the disease shows itself.

Euphorbia species are one type of weed that will do this. You may also be referring to jimson weed. This weed contains the active ingredient atropine, a muscarinic antagonist. In high doses, atropine will cause hot, dry skin, urine retention, dry mouth, increased heart rate, capillary dilation (and …

Blackleg is a bacteria causing spore that can infect some pastures. If the horse (or other cattle) ingests it or gets it in a wound, it can quickly become fatal. The animal can die in 48-72 hours of becoming infected. There are vaccinations available.

Rigor mortis is a build up of released lactic acid. Rigor mortis starts a few hours after you die, and causes your muscles to contract, or shorten, which is their natural state. After about 12 hours Rigor mortis begins to dissipate.

Cows don't "regurgitate" their cud, they burp or belch it up. Since most of the feed they initially eat was eaten in a hurry, belching up a mass of partially digested food to chew it into smaller pieces helps in proper digestion and utilization of nutrients and minerals that is contained in the feed…

First thing it does when it infects you is that it has a long incubation period that lasts for a few years before it shows any symptoms at all. Then when the incubation period is over it starts eating the brain causing ataxia early in the illness, dementia, and late in the illness is myoclonus; all …

Mad cow disease or BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy) is a fatal nerve-degenerative disease that inflicts adult cattle as well as deer and sheep among other ruminants. It is caused by a misfolded protein, called a prion, which affects the central nervous system causing holes in the brain that ma…

A cow that has NEVER had a calf in her lifetime is called a Heifer. A cow that has not had a calf YET is a heavily pregnant or heavy-bred, or a short-bred or long-bred cow. A cow that has not had a calf during a calving season is called a barren cow, an open cow, a cystic cow, a cull cow, a meat/s…

A four-chambered stomach to better rely on just grass and hay throughout its life (all thanks to the rumen, a large fermentation vat that, along with millions of microflora that live in there, help break down the otherwise undigestible parts of plants like cellulose and lignin), Large body size to e…

The normal rate of evaporation is dependent on many factors. First,
every type of molecule has a different rate of evaporation. For
example, acetone has an evaporation rate of 3.0 while water has an
evaporation rate of 0.3. You can find a complete listing of each
molecule's evaporation rate at your …

This both makes a number of assumptions (not all religions have 'heaven'... what is your definition of 'heaven'), and depends on several unknown factors.If a religion which doesn't have an expected heaven is correct; --See rules/mythology for that applicable religion.++Example: Hinduism doesn't h…

No, but you can injure it if you somehow manage. Just be careful. A lot of city kids that go cow tipping do not realize that some of them will chase you. It will be embarrassing to explain that you got your arm broke when a cow ran you over after you picked on it. Or even better, that the huge bruis…

Your body's receptors keep you safe in various ways. They sense
pain, and let you know quickly that something is happening which
sometimes prevents more serious injuries. They also sense
temperatures so that you can be sure not to get overheated and get
dehydrated or too cold and develop hypothermia…

Please be more specific. There are many different sicknesses a calf can get, and just as many different ways to treat them. It helps to provide symptoms before anyone can give you a recommendation of what to treat them with.

Mad Cow Disease is more properly referred to as Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) which is a degeneration of the central nervous system tissue in the brain and spinal cord in mature cattle. BSE is primarily caused by altered proteins or prions which are mostly found in feed tainted with minute …

True blindness may be caused by trauma to the eye, severe conjuntivitis due to IBR (infectious bovine rhinotracheitis) or pink eye or other infections, leptospirosis, lead poisoning, selenium toxicity, fungal infections, vitamin A deficiencies, rabies, vitamin B12 deficiency, neoplasia of the orbit …

A newborn calf should have colostrum as soon as it is born, because it contains antibodies and immunoglobins that are crucial to the calf's health and immunity to the mass of bacteria and viruses floating around that could make a calf sick. There is a 90% chance that the calf will not survive if he …

Not generally - most cow-calf operators have the skill to give neonatal vaccines to newborn calves themselves without having a veterinarian out to give the shots. This is more economical for the producer, and the calves get the vaccines they need.

You haven't been exposed to blackleg (a Clostridial bacterial infection) as the vaccine is a killed vaccine, but it would be a good idea to keep a close watch on how you feel for the next week and watch the accidental injection site as well. If you start to run a fever or notice swelling, redness or…

I think you've been feed it way too much grain than what it needs. You probably were told by someone that cows need grain, and didn't listen to the other part of the equation that cows need to have hay and grass to eat. Also, it's likely that you haven't provided enough exercise for your pet cow: th…

No, not all. They can see quite well, quite often better than humans can, and can often notice things much sooner or that are not obvious to us than we humans can. Very few, if any, are born blind, but a fair few can become blind from maladies later in life, such maladies as cancer eye or untreated…

Most heifers should be around 15 to 18 months of age to be receptive and be able to get bred. Of course this depends on the breed and the type of cattle. For dairy cattle, a farmer aims to have a heifer calve by 24 months, or two years of age. The gestation period for a cow is approximately the same…

NO, it is NOT contagious. Mastitis is not a disease that is spread around by direct or indirect contact. It's an infection of the udder that is caused by bacteria entering the teat canal into the cavity of one or more quarters of the udder, or by injury when a full udder is bumped and bruised excess…

Yes. Interestingly, this is a good example of how dairy cows come back into heat sooner than beef cows. Dairy cows that do not have a calf suckling on them (even though they are producing more than twice the amount of milk), actually come back into heat sooner than beef cows. Research has shown that…

Blackleg is a clostridial bacterial infection that most commonly strikes young cattle that are less than a year old. It is also a concern in young horses and sheep. Clostridial spp. of bacteria are found in the soil, and enters the animal through a wound or ingestion of the organisms. Clostridium ch…

Scours is diarrhea in calves, often caused by a bacterial infection from bacterial species like E. coli. But there are a number of causes of diarrhea in calves, from being exposed to a cold, wet environment, to lack of adequate antibodies in their mother's colostrum, to being exposed to too much so…

It's usually due to genetics causing a lethal genetic disorder that kills the calf prior to parturition, or mineral deficiency. Curly Calf Syndrome and White Muscle Disease are examples of each, respectively.

TB is short for Tuberculosis, a serious, non-treatable disease in people and livestock. It is a chronic infectious disease that is characterized by nodules (tubercules) that may calcify or turn into abcesses. The disease spreads very slowly, and affects mainly the lymph nodes. There are three kinds …

If you stop milking a cow, the udder will get really big, but will not explode. The milk will slowly diminish and the udder will get back to normal size after a while, and she will not be giving milk any more. Of course, to get her to start milking again, she will need to give birth to another calf.…

Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy affects cattle, sheep, goats, deer and elk, as well as humans. No other animal has been known to get infected with TSE, including predators like wolves, dogs, cougars, bears, lions, cats, pigs etc.

Just like in any new mother, there is always risk of some sort of complication after birth, and sometimes these complications can be so serious that a cow or first-calf heifer will die after calving. But, the most common reason for a cow to die after calving is primarily due to the owner's lack of c…

The first sign is that the left side of the cow (the side that the rumen is on) will begin to look like a balloon, the cow may grind their teeth because of pain, they will lie down and get up constantly, and may kick at their stomach.

You need to consult a veterinary surgeon who will prescribe antibiotics as the cow probably has mastitis. Mastitis needs to be treated as soon as you realise that there is a problem. If you act quickly the cow should make a full recovery, but if you delay in seeking treatment from your vet, the cow …

Before thinking of anything else remember the 5 freedoms; Freedom from diseaseFreedom from fear Freedom to express normal behaviorFreedom from thirst and hungerFreedom from discomfort These are key to raising healthy animals, provide them with a clean barn/stall, provide them with food that is clean…

TB affects the digestive system which makes animals eat less and gain less. TB can also affect the lungs, reproductive organs, lymph nodes, and central nervous system. The cost of treatment of TB in cattle is too costly and impractical, plus TB is very contagious so animals must be quarantined. All …

No, Mad Cow Disease is caused by a mutated protein that goes around transforming other healthy proteins into the malformed one. These newly misshapen proteins then go and deform more proteins. This cycle continues until there is so much damage that the body is no longer able to function. This diseas…

We need more information here. Why can't the calf walk? What's wrong with it's hooves that is not enabling it to walk properly? Please provide more information to get a more informative and complete answer.

There are two meanings to the word "processing" in reference to cattle production: Running cows through a chute or race to vaccinate, retag, preg-check and perform body condition scoring prior to being culled or being sent out on winter range or feedSlaughtering cows for beef, after which the carcas…

Milk fever occurs normally in dairy cattle that have just freshly calved. This is a calcium deficiency, the cow is putting all the calcium from her body into the milk leaving her deficient. This is treatable through an IV of calcium into her jugular vein.

No. According to the CDC: "Hand, foot, and mouth disease is often confused with foot-and-mouth disease (also called hoof-and-mouth disease), a disease of cattle, sheep, and swine. However, the two diseases are caused by different viruses and are not related."

Depends on what you're operation requires. Often vaccinations for things like Clostridia (9-way), Lepto (5-way), IBR/BRDV, selenium (for those areas that are Selenium deficient), Scours prevention, and Vibrosis are necessary. Talk to your vet for a proper health assessment for your pregnant cows.

Bloat is the inability to remove gases (through belching) from the stomach. This is often a result in gorging on too much grain, or high protein feeds such as alfalfa or clover. Gas will continue to build up expanding the stomach and putting pressure on major organs such as the lungs.